Smaller and more compact than a treadmill or rowing machine, the right exercise bike can be a great investment.

“Indoor cycling is low impact, but high intensity,” says Alana Murrin, co-founder at Saint Studios Dublin and former head instructor at London’s Psycle studios. “It’s a huge mind booster and mood shifter. Even when I just have small bursts of time, I can put on a 20-minute express workout and get that same sensation I get from an in-person class.”

Cyclists who use stationary bikes for short, high-intensity interval training can significantly improve performance on the road. “Twenty to 30 minutes is the sweet spot for those working out at home,” Murrin says. “If you commit to doing that every other day, you’ll find that consistency is more valuable than intensity.”

On a mission to improve my own fitness, I’ve spent months testing several of the best exercise bikes on the market. Only four made my final cut. Here they are.

The best exercise bikes of 2026: At a glance

How to choose the best exercise bike

There are three main types of exercise bike.

• Upright exercise bikes (sometimes called static bikes) have an upright seat position and higher handlebars. They also tend to have a larger and more padded seat.
• Spin bikes have lower handlebars and geometry similar to a road bike – they are what you would find in an indoor cycling or spin class.
• Recumbent exercise bikes see you sit slightly reclined, with your feet in front of your body. These are useful for those with reduced mobility.

Once you’ve chosen your style of bike, the next thing to consider is its resistance. Most exercise bikes use a flywheel – a metal disc that provides the resistance to your pedalling. Spin instructor Alana Murrin recommends magnetic or electromagnetic resistance, which is quieter and smoother to adjust than direct contact or “friction” resistance. “I’m looking for a fluid sense of resistance,” she says. “If it feels clunky, you’re not going to be able to work up to higher speeds.”

Size is also a key consideration: you need to be able to fit the bike in your home and store it. Then there’s technology. Top-of-the-range models come with monitors to give you real-time feedback, show online cycling classes and simulate outdoor rides, or a tablet holder for using training apps such as Strava and Zwift.

How I test exercise bikes

Dean Markson, 27, admitted assaulting the victim to his severe injury and permanent disfigurement at Merryton Tower on May 27 last year.

A thug has been jailed for 32 months after a Motherwell man was attacked with a bottle and a machete outside his home.

Dean Markson, 27, admitted assaulting the victim to his severe injury and permanent disfigurement at Merryton Tower on May 27 last year.

Hamilton Sheriff Court heard the victim was walking home from the shops about 3.25pm when he was attacked.

Markson ran towards him and struck him on the head with an Eldorado wine bottle, knocking him to the ground.

He continued to inflict blows until the bottle slipped out of his hand and smashed. Another male then struck the victim repeatedly on the head and back with a machete.

The pair left the scene in a car but police officers identified Markson from CCTV images. His DNA was on the broken bottle.

The victim’s partner returned home to find him injured. Worried about the amount of blood he had lost, she called an ambulance.

He had a number of cuts, the most serious of which was a 5cm wound to his back that was closed with stitches.

Markson has previous convictions for assault but defence lawyer Matthew McGovern said there was nothing on his record since 2020 and he had been attempting to “change his lifestyle”.

READ MORE: Serial flasher in the dock after three incidents in Hamilton

He has had addiction issues in the past that led to serious health problems and put his involvement in this assault down to “poor decision-making”.

Sheriff John Hamilton KC said it appeared from a criminal justice social work report that Markson had become involved in a “misguided revenge attack” on the victim.

The sheriff told him: “It seems you felt there was some justification for it.

“There seems to have been some planning as you waited for him to walk past as he came back from the shops.

“He suffered a number of significant wounds and it’s fortunate his injuries were not more serious given he was struck by a bottle and a machete.

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“You do that in broad daylight and you get the jail.”

The 32-month sentence was backdated as Markson has been in custody since May 29.

An arrest warrant was issued for a second man facing the charge who failed to attend court.

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READ MORE: Thug beat up and robbed a man he claimed owed him money for drugs

The biggest great white shark ever recorded in the Atlantic is lingering just six miles off the coast of a major tourist destination.

The 14-foot shark, named Contender, most recently ‘pinged’ last week approximately six miles off St. Augustine, Florida.

Weighing 1,700 pounds, the creature vanished north to Canada’s Gulf of St. Lawrence – and is now back in Florida waters after an impressive 1,000+ mile odyssey.

Scientists say the shark could point them to one of science’s biggest mysteries – where great white sharks mate.

His return to shore on March 12 comes at peak breeding season – and researchers are watching his every move.

The move is a dramatic shift from his mid-February location off Cape Fear, North Carolina, where researchers had been monitoring his southward migration.

‘Contender has become a pretty famous shark, in part because he’s the largest mature male that OCEARCH has ever tagged,’ John P. Tyminski, senior data scientist at OCEARCH, said.

OCEARCH researchers originally tagged Contender offshore of the Florida-Georgia border on January 17 of last year, beginning what would become one of the most fascinating tracking stories in the organisation’s history.

‘He’s shown very interesting movements – gone all the way up into the Gulf of St. Lawrence during the summer and has come all the way back down,’ Tyminski said.

The shark’s epic migration covered thousands of miles along the Atlantic coast, demonstrating the incredible range the apex predators can travel.

What makes Contender’s current location particularly significant to researchers is both his proximity to shore and the timing of his return to Florida waters.

His recent movements have brought him much closer to the coastline than his previous positions further north.

‘His recent move brings him closer to shore,’ Tyminski said, noting that the shark had previously been tracked in the Carolinas before making his way back to Florida’s Atlantic coast.

Contender represents more than just an impressive specimen – he’s a key to unlocking one of the ocean’s greatest mysteries.

As a sexually mature male, his movement patterns could provide crucial insights into the reproductive biology of great white sharks.

‘We keep a close eye on sharks like Contender because, again, he’s sexually mature,’ Tyminski said. ‘One of the questions that we have is where mating takes place for white sharks?’

The timing of Contender’s return to warmer waters aligns with researchers’ theories about great white shark breeding behaviour.

Scientists believe the late winter and early spring period could be critical for mating activity among these magnificent predators.

‘We hypothesise that mating likely occurs or could occur in the late winter, early spring period,’ Tyminski said. ‘So we’re right in the midst of that.’

This makes tracking mature sharks like Contender invaluable for conservation efforts.

By monitoring the movement patterns of both mature males and females during this crucial time period, researchers hope to identify potential mating grounds and better understand the reproductive cycle of great white sharks.

‘Keeping an eye on white sharks like Contender can give us some indirect clues as to where mating may be occurring,’ Tyminski said.

‘It is definitely one of the questions that we still really want to try to answer to help protect and conserve white sharks.’

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

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Germany head coach Julian Nagelsmann has criticised Eddie Howe’s decision to play Nick Woltemade as a midfielder for Newcastle United.

Woltemade made an impressive start to his career at Newcastle following his £69 million move from Stuttgart last summer, scoring six goals in his first 11 appearances.

But the 24-year-old has found the net just once in 19 appearances in 2026 and in recent weeks, he has played in a central midfield role with Anthony Gordon playing as a striker.

Woltemade, who has now been called up to Germany’s squad for their upcoming friendlies against Switzerland and Ghana, was also left on the bench for both of Newcastle’s Champions League last-16 games against Barcelona this month.

After announcing his Germany squad on Thursday, Nagelsmann took aim at Howe’s decision to play Woltemade as a midfielder and claims the forward is simply too far from goal to make an impact.

‘In a quieter setting he’s a super pleasant guy with a good wit, great sense of humour, I think he’s a really great character who is always in a good mood and always radiates a lot in conversations,’ Nagelsmann said.

‘He’s undoubtedly had a difficult time at Newcastle, no doubt, but that’s normal too.

‘I also tried to play him in his role. I also think that what I said was interpreted too negatively. He did well for us but in a role that no one would have thought of six months ago, or rather, in the six months before the World Cup qualifiers because many other players were injured.

‘He can play from the start but he can also play a good role as a substitute because he already has an unorthodox playing style with his size and technique, and I think if you look at his record with us he has very good memories with the national team recently and is extremely happy about it. I believe it will help him too.

‘And when assessing Newcastle, I think you simply have to look at the whole issue. Yes, he’s not currently a striker in the squad, so [Anthony] Gordon basically scores everything and he [Woltemade] sits out the last two top games.

‘He’s not a striker who plays consistently there and that takes something away. Eddie Howe has obviously decided, without me knowing any more details, to simple swap his strikers and that’s his right, he should do it as he wants and what he thinks is right. It’s not my problem at all, I’m just trying to evaluate the player within the overall structure and if there were three strikers who always played I would be significantly more worried than Newcastle’s current set-up where the strikers are constantly being rotated.

‘Lately, and this is just my opinion, judging him alone he’s often played very deep and when he’s defending as a double pivot, it’s quite a long way for Nick to cover. If he wants to get towards goal it’s very unlikely he will score because he’s not a class counter-attacking striker who can sprint at 36 km/h to outrun the opponent, that has to be said.

‘And then if he’s 80 metres away from the goal, I think as a British journalist you can’t expect him to score 20 goals there because the distance is simply too far. Yes, it depends a bit on the overall situation. What I can promise is that he is rarely 80 metres away from the goal. I will try to move him closer to 30 metres away from the goal and then he’s already dangerous and will do many things well.

‘I think very highly of him as a person too. He is not someone who puts a lot of thought into it. Nevertheless, the situation is obviously disturbing, I think that it’s normal that he would prefer things to be different but I think that’s normal. New culture, new league, new language, you might have learned that in school but it’s all new, new city.

‘It also took time in Stuttgart, not even registered for the Champions League for the first half of the year [last season] then scored seven goals in the second half. Yes, I have total trust in him and I also give him the necessary patience, everything will be alright.’

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Manchester City fans can book their seat at Wembley Stadium as Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta go head-to-head in their first shot at silverware this season.

Manchester City fans can still secure a seat at Wembley for the Carabao Cup final. On Sunday (March 22), the Blues will face their Premier League rivals in their first shot at silverware this season, and fans can book last-minute tickets today.

Pep Guardiola’s side may be trailing Arsenal in the league, but they could end the Gunners’ hopes of a historic quadruple with a win at Wembley. The two teams drew 1-1 when they last met in September, but a lot has happened since then, with City strengthening their squad with new signings like Antoine Semenyo and Marc Guéhi.

Man City enjoyed an incredible run of four straight League Cup wins from 2018 to 2021 and could lift the trophy for a ninth time should they beat Arsenal on Sunday. The club’s own allocation of tickets has sold out, but there are still plenty available from other official channels like Seat Unique, where fans can book a range of luxury Carabao Cup Final VIP and hospitality packages.

They don’t come cheap, with prices starting at £1,399 per person for a Taphouse Social – Manchester City ticket, but this is touted as ‘the ultimate luxury matchday experience’. Included in the price is premium seating on Level Two, Wembley’s middle tier with padded seats offering stellar views of the pitch.

Guests will have access to the stadium 2.5 hours before kick-off, when they can enjoy the Taphouse Social, Wembley’s new premium area full of exclusive food and drink outlets. This includes a bar with 48 taps pouring beers, wine, cocktails, spirits and soft drinks, plus pies and pastries from Taphouse Bites.

Buy Carabao Cup Final VIP tickets

From £1,399

Seat Unique

Buy tickets here

The Carabao Cup Final will see Arsenal v Manchester City at London’s Wembley Stadium this March.

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Fans can access Taphouse Social on two sides of the stadium – West and East – but only tickets to the dedicated Man City area are available. However, fans should note the stadium will close one hour after the final whistle.

Seat Unique’s other VIP package is the luxury Bobby Moore Lounge at £3,499 per person. This includes unrivalled premium seating on the halfway line, offering ‘the very best views of the match’ close to the dugout and trophy route.

The exclusive Bobby Moore lounge is said to be one of Wembley’s ‘finest hospitality lounges’. A ticket provides a seat at a shared table for up to three hours before kick-off and an hour after the match.

Here, guests can enjoy Canapés on arrival and unlimited Laurent Perrier Champagne both pre and post-match. Perhaps more importantly, a ticket includes a complimentary bar of beers, fine wines, spirits and soft drinks.

As well as a four-course meal and cheeseboard served after the game.

Similar packages may be available directly from Wembley Stadium. With supporters able to enquire via this online form.

For those watching at home, the Carabao Cup final will be shown live on ITV and Sky Sports. Kick-off is at 4.30pm on Sunday, March 22.

People have been floored after finally realising what the tiny, additional pocket on a pair of jeans was actually designed for – and the answer dates back to the 1890s

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People have only just learned the original reason behind the small, extra pocket inside a pair of jeans. Jeans are a wardrobe staple for countless people, and can be styled up for more formal occasions, and are often the top choice for laidback, comfort dressing.

Made from denim, jeans have a long-standing history. Denim was the traditional fabric used in workwear, with the first pair of jeans – similar to those we know and love today – created by an American tailor named Jacob Davis and dry goods wholesaler Levi Strauss, who supplied him with the material to make them.

The pair joined forces and patented the first riveted denim work trousers on 20 May 1873. This led to the creation of the classic jeans so beloved to this day, as before this, there were no rivets in denim workwear or trousers. Today, jeans are available in a range of cuts, colours and styles, from mum jeans, high-waisted, bootcut and flared, to wide-leg, skinny, distressed and more.

The Levi’s website states: “We should note that they were called ‘waist overalls’ or ‘overalls’ until 1960, when baby boomers adopted the name ‘jeans’.”

Often, the front pocket of a pair of jeans features an additional, much smaller pocket at the hip. It’s typically a visible detail included in many styles of jeans.

On Reddit, one user expressed curiosity about the purpose of this small pocket. Sharing an image, they asked: “What’s the smaller pockets within pockets of jeans for? Does anyone know the use of [the] smaller pocket [and what it] is designed for?”

In the comments section, Reddit users were eager to share their views, with some posting humorous remarks while others revealed their own personal uses for the diminutive pocket.

One said: “I use it and have always used it for my lighter.”

Another suggested: “Hold your lucky coin.”

A third said: “Steve Jobs said they were for the iPod Nano when it launched in 2005. I distinctly remember him pulling one out of his mini pocket in the reveal video. First and only time I ever bought an Apple product new.”

A fourth agreed: “I used to use it for my iPod Nano. Good times… good times.”

However, someone else revealed the actual origin of the pocket, explaining it was originally designed to store a pocket watch. They simply said: “It was originally for pocket watches.”

Another responded: “I thought it was called the coin pocket, but watch makes more sense!”

Another said: “Why did it take so long for someone to go: ‘what if pocket watch… but bracelet!’”

One replied: “It didn’t take that long, there are medieval necklace, wrist and even ring watches. In the Victorian era, wrist watches were seen as feminine as they were delicate, and pocket watches were seen as reliable and sturdy.

“It took the combination of the Boer and World War One to make wrist watches masculine as jumping on the deck and crawling through the muck tended to break pocket watches.”

Per Britannica: “The small pocket as we know it today was not an element of the blue jeans mass-produced by Levi Strauss and Co until the 1890s, when the target buyers for the work trousers were carpenters, railroad workers, farmers, and miners.”

“My concern would be, if these new service charges are not brought in, it could negatively affect the bin collection services that the council provides.”

A Co Down councillor has hit out at a Sinn Fein backed vote for a new “bin tax” on the district.

Newry, Mourne and Down District Council’s environment committee this week approved a new price list for its bins collection service.

Whilst the cost of household replacement bins remains the same, an attempt to keep commercial costs at the “status quo” was thwarted by a Sinn Fein majority vote over concerns about an impact on service quality.

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Bringing forward an amendment, Rowallane SDLP councillor Terry Andrews said: “I would like to propose that we keep the status quo for bin charges until the end of the current council mandate in 2027.

“The bin prices can then be brought back to the chamber when the new mandate has been decided for a review of these costs.”

A report in chambers shows that higher costs for bin services will come into force from April at an increase of 5%, the first hike in two years.

The cost of replacement bins remains the same with a standard (240litre) residual waste bin £37 and recycling and food waste bins at £26.50 each.

In comparison, Belfast City Council’s website states that its recycling bins and boxes are free, but there is a charge for general waste bins (£25.50) and home composters (£10).

The price rises at Newry, Mourne and Down District Council will be for commercial waste to household recycling centres and trade kerbside collections.

Slieve Gullion Sinn Fein councillor Mickey Larkin said: “My concern would be, if these new service charges are not brought in, it could negatively affect the bin collection services that the council provides.

“I could not support this amendment.”

A majority in chambers (7 to 6) approved the new increase with only Sinn Fein elected members supporting the rise.

An attempt by Mournes DUP councillor Henry Reilly to amend the charges for trailer vehicles into the council household recycling centres was withdrawn in order for a report to be brought back to the committee.

However, Cllr Reilly reacted to the new cost rise saying: “I’ll just say I am very disappointed that Sinn Fein have put another bin tax on us.”

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